Chris Cairns must bowl against India

India, currently second-favourite to win this World Cup, are in an extremely luxurious position now, secure in the knowledge that their opponent in the semi-final will be the relatively weak Kenya. Even so, they should not take that match against Kenya lightly, considering the fickle nature of one-day cricket and the huge repercussions that would stem from losing a World Cup semi-final.

But before that, India have a serious appointment against New Zealand at Centurion on Friday, and although India could not care less about the result of the match, New Zealand has to do all the hard work to qualify for the semi-final. I don't, however, expect the Indian think-tank to rest players and make it easy for New Zealand. Sourav Ganguly and John Wright have been on the right path in following the policy of not breaking a winning combination and although some may say that they might rue this policy towards the end of the World Cup, I feel the Indians are right on this point.

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Arguably what India ought to have done is to give the likes of Ajit Agarkar a chance before the World Cup - or possibly in the league stages, for if an Agarkar short of match-practice has to replace somebody at short notice, he may be targeted by the opposition - to India's detriment.

Having said that, I still maintain that it has been a case of "so far so good" for the Indian team, and in preparing for the final, they must dare to try out a few new things. The last thing India want to do is look predictable against a team like Australia in the climax of cricket's most important competition.

In my eyes, the only team that has looked like stopping Australia in their tracks is New Zealand. Stephen Fleming is as astute a captain as they come, and he must spend much time working out strategy ahead of every game. Fleming will need to be flexible with his planning as he could be accused of coming up with just a Plan A and no Plan B. When his plans pay off, it looks simply superb; look how the Kiwis used Shane Bond to demolish the Australian batting. But we also saw the inability of the Kiwis to go for the kill, and you just cannot give a team like Australia a second chance.

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Fleming is the one who knows a lot about playing and winning against Australia, so I'd like to see, for added spice in this World Cup, New Zealand beat India on Friday and then make the first semi-final a trans-Tasman affair. That may work out in favour of the Indians too, for there is a very good chance that New Zealand could knock out the mighty Aussies in the semi-final.

Speculation aside, for all that to happen, New Zealand has to beat India at Centurion. Bond will have to produce yet another dream spell to counter the likes of Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar. If New Zealand manages some early breakthroughs, then the game is half-won.

I sincerely hope to see Chris Cairns bowling against India; his bowling not only ensures a balance to their side but also helps his performance with the bat. Cairns has been a genuine match-winner for New Zealand and ranks up there along with Nathan Astle in utility value. Fleming's inventiveness is an added edge, although I am not sure I would like to see Daniel Vettori open the innings against India; a cheap early wicket is just the last thing New Zealand need in such a crucial game.